


If Only It Were That Simple

by Vorrir



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Identity Reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-20
Updated: 2017-03-20
Packaged: 2018-10-08 08:24:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10382526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vorrir/pseuds/Vorrir
Summary: Ladybug and Chat Noir have been partners for three long years, growing closer by the day. One night, Adrien argues with Plagg, as he often does, about not being able to tell Ladybug who he is. He just didn't plan for Ladybug to hear.





	

Ladybug flew through the streets of Paris, the evening air rushing through her hair. She had had a delightfully relaxing day, and was looking forward to some much needed rest. Even the daily Akuma had been incredibly easy, barely needing Chat Noir's Cataclysm. Turns out, a sloth enthusiast was not the best base for a supervillain. Since she hadn't needed to use her Lucky Charm, and her parents believed their dutiful daughter was asleep early for a school night, Ladybug had free reign of the night, and had actually planned to meet up with Chat later on. After his Kwami had rested, of course. They had made plans to rendezvous at the top of the Eiffel Tower at midnight, and Chat had said he would have some sort of surprise waiting for her. When pressured, he would only reveal that she was going to love it, and that it was something he'd been meaning to share for a long time.

However, before he vaulted off, Ladybug could have sworn she'd heard him whisper, "I hope you do, anyway."

Putting it off for now, she landed on a nearby ledge, flipping her yo-yo open to check the time. With two hours to spare, she wondered what to do with herself. She could wait with a good patrol, but judging by the sounds of the city, it was going to be a slow night by anyone's standards. She couldn't imagine herself simply sight seeing for two hours without getting bored, not by herself at least.

Ladybug chuckled when she thought, "Maybe I should go visit Adrien." After a pause, she picked up on that train of thought, thinking, "Although... That sloth Akuma did get pretty close to the Agreste's... Maybe I should check up on him, just to see if he's alright. After all, any Akuma can be traumatizing, especially ones with razor sharp claws! Speed notwithstanding, the plaintive cries of the beast still send shivers down my spine. It would be wrong for me not to see if he’s alright!”

Confident in her justification to abuse her powers, Ladybug tossed out her yo-yo, latching onto a nearby spire as she swung through the city. With her memory, speed, and conviction, it didn't take long for her to reach the Agreste mansion. With a final twirl for good luck, she landed on the balcony overlooking Adrien's room, quiet as a mouse. Deciding to surprise him, she tied her yo-yo around the decorative fence, slowly lowering herself upside down in front of his large windows. She noticed that he had left one such window open, letting in the cool night air. Thanking whatever fount of luck Tikki offered her, Ladybug slowly crept her way over.

She stopped, however, when she heard Adrien yelling on the other side. Yet, yelling wasn’t quite the right word. It was angry, but it was far more controlled than a shout. She didn’t understand it until she heard someone else in the room respond. It was a smaller voice, lighter, with a hint of mischief laced in every syllable. It seemed so foreign, yet strangely familiar. Peering through the glass, she saw Adrien seated at his desk, his head held in his hands. Other than a single lamp on his desk, no lights shone in his room, casting harsh shadows into every crevice. Despite the room’s clutter, it always felt so empty. As if the material distractions only fed off of the loneliness of its occupant. What truly caught her attention, though, and the sole reason she had not made her presence known, was the shifting shadow at Adrien’s side. It was smaller than his hand, with three long tendrils branching from its center of mass, and it seemed to levitate on its own. A sudden twitch was all the warning that Ladybug had before the shadow turned to face her, two impossibly green eyes shining through the darkness.

However, rather than alerting Adrien to her presence, the shadow merely shrugged, turning back to him before asking, “So you’re saying you want to tell her?”

“It’s more than that,” Adrien pleaded, “I need to tell her.”

“Why though?” At Adrien’s incredulous look, it continued, “I’m just saying, you two have had a good thing going for three years now. Why risk that?”

Adrien stood, preferring to pace as he explained, “We’ve been through this, Plagg. I’m living a lie! Lying to my father, I can handle. Lying to Nino is rough, but I have to. But lying to Ladybug? Even just a lie of omission? That, I cannot stand.”

Floating beside him, Plagg said, “Sure, but you agreed to all of that when you signed on. The rules are -”

“I don’t care about the rules!” Adrien interrupted. He rubbed his forehead, collecting his thoughts as he said, “Not all of them, anyway. I know most people can’t know who I am, and I agree, that’s necessary. Letting that out could create an endless stream of confusion, worry, and jealousy, and we can’t risk that with Hawkmoth around. But I’m not talking about telling everyone. I’m talking about telling one person, my partner!” Adrien slammed his hand to his chest for emphasis, throwing the other out to his side as he said, “The same woman who has saved my life more times than I can count. The same woman who has clarified time, and time again, just how much she trusts me. The same woman I have given my heart to. How can I say that I trust her, that I would do anything for her if she would simply ask, if I can’t even tell her my name?” Adrien’s arms fell to his side as he whispered, “If Ladybug can’t know that I’m Chat Noir because of some ancient rule, then I say, to hell with the rules.”

Ladybug had known, of course. She knew what a Kwami looked like, and Plagg’s presence could only mean one thing for Adrien’s life. But Adrien saying it aloud cemented it as fact. Adrien was Chat Noir. Adrien Agreste, the boy Marinette had held a crush on for three long years, was the partner that she saw every day. The same partner she had grown to respect, and admire, was the man she had fallen in love with. Two worlds collided in Ladybug’s mind. The first was Adrien Agreste, the sweet, caring, funny, and affectionate man she knew from afar. The second was Chat Noir, the daring, adventurous, powerful, altruistic, and truly loving man she had grown to appreciate as a partner and confidant. The resulting picture was a dangerous one, with all the perfect flaws and daunting perfections of both sides, and Ladybug felt completely overwhelmed. So, with a rushed tug on her yo-yo, she slid back up to the balcony, deftly untied the string, and dashed off into the night, wanting nothing more than to just call it a night and go to sleep.

Out of earshot, she didn’t hear Plagg sigh as he said, “Look kid, at the end of the day, I can’t force you to do anything. You know it’s against the rules, and that’s all I can do. But… Have you ever thought that maybe Ladybug doesn’t want to know who you are?”

“Every single day.” Adrien said without hesitation. Squaring his shoulders, he continued, “And if she doesn’t, okay. I won’t tell her, and I’ll learn to live with it. But that’s our decision, Plagg. Not yours. Just eat your cheese, and let’s get out of here.”

Begrudgingly, Plagg worked through the rest of his Camembert. Eventually, even his grumbling petered out, replaced with the usual sounds of his feasts. Trying unsuccessfully to tune it out, Adrien revisited his plan for the evening. Pulling out his trusty notepad, he skimmed through the lines, making a note every now and again.

He read, “School, check. Photo shoot, 12 in a week, go me, check. Akuma, check. Prepare surprise on the Eiffel Tower, check. Tell Ladybug who you are… How the hell am I gonna do that?” Over the course of the last few weeks, Adrien had devoted so much time and energy into psyching himself up for the big reveal, he hadn’t put much thought into how it would actually go. He knew the bare bones of what he planned to do, in that he’d have a nice dinner with his Lady, enjoy their favorite spot in Paris, and eventually tell her who he is, but he was at a loss for how to go from one to the other. Well, he knew probably the worst way to do it, and that would be to drop his transformation while her back was turned, letting the chips fall where they may, but he didn’t want to resort to such tricks. It had to be right, special, the kind of thing they’d never forget or regret. But overall, Adrien was simply too anxious to string two thoughts together. He did know one thing, though, and that was that he desperately needed advice. The question became, who to ask?

Adrien began working through the people he trusted, all the while muttering to himself, “Maybe I could ask Nino… Then again, he’s my best bud, but he didn’t know how to talk to a girl until he was literally trapped in a cage with one, so he’s probably not the best choice. This feels like it needs more of a feminine touch… Alya might be able to help, but I don’t really know her all that well… I can already hear what Chloe would say, ‘Just rip it off, like a bandaid. What’s the worst that could happen?’... Wait, what about… Marinette. She’s never given me any bad advice, and knows her way around tricky situations. Hell, she diplomatically worked her way through our class to become class president, tending to everyone’s needs. If there’s anyone that would know how to take all of Ladybug’s view into account, it’d be her.” Plan in mind, Adrien called out, “Plagg, are you done? We need to stop somewhere before meeting up with Ladybug. Transform me!”

With a flash of light, Chat Noir leapt out of his window, using his baton to vault over three buildings in his first bound. After landing on the closest roof, he broke into a sprint, enjoying the rush of running through the skyline. As he leapt over alleyways, he saw the whole of Paris laid out for him, every light shimmering as if a star. Above, the full moon smiled down on him, not a cloud to be seen. Off in the distance, he could see the Seine, reflecting the moon’s gentle glow off of its waves. Tonight would be perfect, if he could only figure out the words to say. Feeling the wind tussle his hair, Chat ran with renewed vigor, spotting the beloved bakery up ahead.

With a final jump, Chat perched on a nearby rooftop, inspecting Marinette’s room to see if she was home. He was relieved to see that the lights were on upstairs, and there appeared to be movement. However, based on the shadows, Marinette was either pacing heavily, or had company over. Ever so quietly, as to not disturb any potential guests, he used his baton to lower himself from the adjacent rooftop, landing in a crouch onto Marinette’s balcony. Peering over the edge, he still couldn’t quite see through the windows into her room. Taking a moment to calm his worries and second guesses, Chat slid down the bakery’s rooftop, finding stable footing on their gutters. Working his way around, Chat found himself looking through one of the side windows, having to peer over Marinette’s computer. Still, he could see Marinette pacing furiously across the room, obviously deep in thought. She appeared to be talking to herself, but he couldn’t make out the words. Eventually, she threw her arms up in frustration, falling back onto her chaise lounge. Walking along the gutters, Chat faced the circular window near the lounge, trying to hear what had her so troubled. If he could offer advice to that, he might be able to give it in exchange for help with his Ladybug problem.

Closer now, he could finally hear her through the glass, as she sad, “Ugh, I just don’t know what to do! I mean, it’s obvious that that’s what he wants to tell me tonight, but what do I even say to that? Do I tell him I know? Should I play it like I always knew? No, that makes no sense. What should I do, Tikki?”

Just then, a floating red ball of joy flew into view, lying down beside Marinette as she said, “Well, I don’t think it really matters what I think. What do you want to do? Do you want to tell him?”

“I have ever since the day we met.” She said without hesitation. After a moment, she asked, “What about that whole, ‘No one can know who you are,’ deal?”

Tikki shrugged, saying, “Technically, we Kwami can’t push our charges to reveal who they are, it’s against our nature. Once you know, though, there’s not a lot we can do to stop you.” She giggled before adding, “Personally, I love it whenever Ladybug and Chat Noir reveal their personal identities. It’s always different, without fail. There is one constant, though.”

Turning to her, Marinette asked, “What’s that?”

“It’s always so romantic.” She said, glee evident in all of her small features, adding on, “Especially when it’s started by Ladybug.”

Marinette rolled her eyes, saying, “Yeah right, there’s no way I’d outdo Chat in terms of romance. I mean, how do you really see that happening? ‘ Hey Hot Stuff, we've been partners for three years now, and we never recognized each other, despite the fact that we’ve literally been seeing each other every day at school! Crazy right? Unrelated, I've had this MASSIVE crush on you since the day we met, you wanna go get smoothies later?' Yeah, no dice."

Floating up, Tikki sang out, “Oh, you never know.”

As she did, she locked eyes with Chat, who was doing his damndest not to swoon off of the rooftop. For here was Ladybug, the woman he’d fallen for and grown to truly love, confessing that she’d felt the same for him. Albeit for his civilian self, but still. The fact that Marinette, creative, sweet, accomplished Marinette, had fallen for Adrien was a joy of its own. He’d always thought of her as one of his closest friends, and if he hadn’t given himself wholly to Ladybug, he had admitted a long time ago that he could see himself falling for her. But to hear that they were one and the same, it sent his heart dancing. It also made him realize something. His plans that night weren’t nearly enough. So, he leapt off the roof, seeking seclusion to plan his next move.

Later that evening, Ladybug swung up the Eiffel Tower, her hands shaking with nerves. Two hours of thought, and she still had no idea what she was going to do. Still, she didn’t want to just ditch Chat when he’d gone to such lengths, so she found herself at the top of the tower, nerves and all. As soon as she cleared the guardrail on the final level, she noticed the sweet smell of roses, given off by the countless petals strewn on the ground. She could hear soft violins on the opposite side, a thicker patch of petals forming a path around the central tower. From there, she could see her beloved city below her, streets and homes bustling with life.

Touched, Ladybug held a hand over her heart, whispering, “Oh, Chat. All of this for me?”

Following the path, she rounded a corner, walking straight into Chat Noir. Correcting themselves, one of the first things Ladybug noticed was the empty bucket he held between them.

At her questioning glance, he gestured to the petals around them, saying, “The uh… The wind kept -” Just then, a gust of wind picked up around them, the rose petals flying off into the distance. Chat sighed, saying, “Yeah. That.”

Ladybug was enraptured by the beauty of it all. Around them, a tornado of roses swirled and danced, carried off by the breeze. Directly ahead, Chat had prepared a table and a set of chairs, an oil lamp’s light reflecting off of a covered ice bucket. The music came from a speaker he had brought up, hooked up to a nondescript phone. And down below, their vantage point offered a breathtaking view of Paris. Running up to the guardrail, Ladybug saw countless lights, the streets and buildings below painting a masterpiece of life and joy. Cutting through the middle of it all, the Seine curved like a snake, reflecting streetlights and bridges in its waves. Following the river, her eyes were drawn upward, past the horizon, where she saw a full moon shining down on them.

Chat, on the other hand, couldn’t take his eyes off of her. He had long thought that where they were standing was the most beautiful view in Paris, but in one moment, Ladybug had shattered that thought. For there, right then, as she was drinking in all the beauty of the world, Chat saw nothing but how it shimmered in her eyes.

Turning to face him, Chat was dumbstruck by the radiant smile on her face as she exclaimed, “Chat, this is beautiful!”

Eventually coming back to his senses, Chat bowed, saying, “It was the least I could do.” Pulling out the chair closest to him, he asked, “Care to take a seat?”

“Why, thank you,” she said with a mock curtsy. After seating Ladybug, Chat moved to his own seat. After making sure he was comfortable there, Ladybug wrung her hands, asking, “So, what’s this surprise you mentioned?”

Shocked that she had mentioned it so soon, Chat cleared his throat, saying, “Yeah, I uh… I actually had a better idea.”

Slightly worried, she asked, “Okay… What were you thinking?”

“Well, it’s just that we never actually hang out.” Chat said, leaning on the table before adding, “We fight monsters, save Paris, but we barely have any time to ourselves. I had made these big plans tonight to ask you something, but, it doesn’t seem right just yet. So, tonight I was thinking we could do away with big plans. No surprises, no questions, just… Hang out.”

Ladybug honestly felt hurt by Chat’s change of mind. True, she was relieved that she didn’t have to face his reaction just yet, but she couldn’t help but wonder why he was hesitating. Immediately, her mind was plagued with thoughts of self-doubt and condemnation, as if Chat had changed his mind solely because he didn’t want her to know. As if he didn’t want to tell her, the one person he knew he could tell anything. Looking for some sort of answer, Ladybug felt a deep anger and indignation rise within her. Was she not good enough to know? Did he put some weight behind their secrets now, despite the years of openness between them? What was so different here? Locking eyes with him, she prepared to let loose the hounds of war, to convince him to change his mind. However, as soon as she met his gaze, she was struck by a tenderness and love she had never seen from him before. It set her mind at ease, and she knew that this wasn’t some ploy to shut her out, but was instead a way for them to spend more time together. She knew then, without really knowing why, that he would tell her the truth someday. That the years where they fought to hide themselves were gone, replaced with something much more intimate between them.

Still, she couldn’t just drop it. Looking around, she probed again, saying, “Whatever all of this was for must be some surprise.” Growing a bit more serious, she offered her hand over the table, asking, “You know you can tell me anything, right?”

Gratefully accepting the offer, Chat brought her hand to his lips as he said, “Absolutely, Ladybug. And I will, in due time. For now, though, you still haven’t asked.”

After taking her hand back, she asked, “Asked what?”

“What’s in the ice bucket.”

“Okay. What’s in the ice bucket?”

“I’m so glad you asked.” Chat said, pulling the checkered sheet between them off to reveal two tubs of gelato chilling on the ice.

Ladybug gasped, saying, “You remembered!” Reaching out, she grabbed the Mint Chocolate Chip tub, leaving the Strawberry one behind.

Grabbing the other, Chat said, “You did say it was your favorite.” From the bucket’s side, he pulled out two spoons, passing one to Ladybug.

“Yeah, like, two years ago!” Accepting the spoon, she dug into the frosty treat, closing her eyes to fully appreciate the taste. Without opening her eyes, she asked, “You know you aren’t getting a drop of this, right?”

Laughing, he answered, “That’s why I brought my own.”

They sat like that for two hours, working through their gelato, talking about everything and nothing. Over the course of the evening, they had moved their seats next to each other, overlooking the streets of Paris. They reminisced about old fights, past wants, and troubles they overcame together. For the first time in their partnership, they never shied away from any personal information. However, neither pressed for more, and no names were ever mentioned. It was just as Chat said, it didn’t quite feel right. They each silently agreed that that night, that one perfect evening, would be the final page to this chapter of their lives. Reveals could wait, even if they both knew everything. Overtime, they fell into a comfortable silence, leaning against each other, watching their city sleep.

Neither knew how long it was before Ladybug asked, “Do you ever think about retiring?”

Raising his eyebrow, Chat said, “And let Hawkmoth win? Not a chance.”

“No, not like that. I mean, whenever we beat Hawkmoth, what do you think we’ll do? Run around policing petty pickpockets?”

Chat raised a fist, waiting for the answering bump before saying, “Nice alliteration, but no.” After a pause, he added, “Geez, what would our lives even be like? I can’t even remember what I used to do before you and Plagg came along. Well, I can, I just don’t want to.”

With a ruffle of his hair, Ladybug snuggled closer to him, saying, “Well, whatever happens, I know I can count on you Chat.”

Squeezing her in a hug, he whispered, “Always and forever.”

The following day, Marinette could barely contain herself through her classes. Because there, literally sitting right in front of her, was Chat Noir. However, it wasn’t like she could simply march up to him and confess. That would be lunacy, and he might mistake her for some avid fan. No, it had to be done right, in private, where he would have no reason not to believe her. The question became, how would she get him alone without alerting anyone else? It didn’t make anything easier that he had chosen today of all days to dress formally. With black slacks, a grey button down shirt rolled up to his elbows, topped with a regal black tie, he was like a walking nightmare for Marinette’s nerves. It didn’t help at all when she noticed the tie had green accents when it caught the light. Overall, if she hadn’t already known that he was Chat Noir, it was really obvious now.

Finally, after all of their classes were done, Marinette was standing with Alya in the school’s main pavilion, trying to rally her courage to simply talk to him. It had been so easy when he still looked like Chat, but to know beyond any shadow of a doubt that she was talking to Adrien, it was all a little too daunting. For now, at least, she could keep an eye on him while he spoke with his father’s secretary.

Alya grabbed her wrists, saying, “You can do this, girl. What’s the big deal? Sure, he looks a bit more spiffy today, but you’ve been fine around him for months. Where’s all this fidgeting coming from?”

Landing on a half truth, Marinette said, “I don’t know. He just looks so different today, and I don’t know if I can handle it.” For dramatic effect, she hung her head in her hands, hoping for some form of pep talk.

Instead, all she got was, “Well, you better figure out how to handle it. He’s coming this way.”

Aghast, Marinette looked up to see that, yes, Adrien was marching his way over. He had his hands behind his back, with a light blush on his face. Halfway over, he made sure to adjust his tie, making sure it looked its best.

Upon arrival, he cleared his throat, stammering out, “H-hi. I, um… I was thinking, no. I was wondering, um… Here.” Throwing out the last word as if it burned him, he extended his arms, revealing the bouquet of roses he had hidden behind his back. With a slight bow, he offered them to Marinette.

Alya slowly backed away, grinning from ear to ear, as Marinette accepted them, saying, “Th-thank you, Adrien. They’re lovely.”

Both of them competing to see who could blush harder, Adrien asked, “So, I was wondering if you wanted to hang out later. Grab a smoothie, maybe?”

Not wanting to assume anything, she said, “Yeah, that sounds great. Let me ask Alya and we can head over.”

“Actually, I was thinking just the two of us.” Adrien said, rubbing the back of his head. Finally getting to the line he had practiced in the mirror, he said, “We’ve got a lot to chat about.”

With that, Marinette knew. She would never be certain how she knew. Over the years, she would equate it to the circumstantial pun, or the familiar glint in his eyes, or the certain way he held his hips. Whatever the cause, Marinette knew right then that Adrien knew who she was.

And she couldn’t have been happier.


End file.
